Choosing a music genre can be fraught with danger. Especially swing. I mean, what exactly is swing?
You can look at the
Wikipedia definition that gives us:
the sense of propulsive rhythmic feel or groove created by the musical interaction between the performers, especially when the music creates a "visceral response" such as feet tapping or head nodding. The term "swing" is also used to refer to several other related jazz concepts including the sung note (a lilting rhythm of unequal notes) and the genre of swing, a jazz style which originated in the 1930s.
The music selected for tonight's program fits this general definition (hopefully).
1. Have You Met Miss Jones?
2. Beyond The Sea
- Robbie Williams (Swing When You're Winning)
This album featured a bit of change in direction for Robbie Williams. Released in 2001, this was the "big band album he had always dreamed of making". This album was a commercial hit around the world. Both tracks chosen were used in feature films. Have You Met Miss Jones? was recorded for the 2001 film Bridget Jones's Diaries and Beyond The Sea was used in the 2003 Pixar animation, Finding Nemo.
3. Sing, Sing, Sing
- Cincinnati Pops Orchestra (The Very Best of Erich Kunzel • Cincinnati Pops Orchestra: Top 20)
Originally composed in 1936 by Louis Prima, this was most famously covered by Benny "King of Swing" Goodman. This version comes from the a "best of" album, with Erich Kunzel conducting the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, released in 1994.
4. Just The Way You Are
- Rias Bigband (Pop Goes Swing)
I found this song on i-Tunes when I put together a Billy Joel in brass program last year. This is one of a number of songs on tonight that are a swing cover of a well known original song. This is performed by Horst Jankowski and Rias Bigband from their 1991 album Pop Goes Swing.
5. Three Kings' Swing - Swiss Army Brass Band (Best of Swiss Army Brass Band)
6. Swingtime Religion - Melbourne Staff Band (Celebration of Faithfulness)
7. A Song to Swing - David Daws (Golden Slippers)
Brass Bands have often been described as having the ability to swing "like a rusty gate". Having said that, these three pieces are worthy of inclusion in tonight's show. We start off with Three King's Swing, from the 2006 "best of" album by Swiss Army Brass Band. We move on to two Salvation Army recordings. Swingtime Religion is from the 2007 Celebration of Faithfullness album by Melbourne Staff Band and then David Daws with the International Staff Band of the Salvation Army playing A Song to Swing from their Golden Slippers CD.
8. Don't Know Much About Love
9. Lover Come Back To Me
- Vince Jones and Grace Knight (Come In Spinner)
This music was for the ABC movie Come in Spinner, which was created back in 1990, and based on the book of the same name. It was set at the end of the Second World War. The music was a collaboration of Australian Jazz masters, Vince Jones and Grace Knight.
10. American Patrol
11. Little Brown Jug
12. Hallelujah
13. In The Mood
Glenn Miller was a trombone player, and also one of the music giants in the early forties. His life was tragically cut short in a plane crash in December 1944, but in the 5 years before then was one of the best selling recording artists. Miller was actually in charge of the Army Air Force Band as part of his services to the armed forces during the Second World War. This 50 piece band toured England in 1944, giving over 800 performances.
American Patrol and Little Brown Jug were recorded for the Academy Award winning movie,
The Glenn Miller Story (1954).
Hallelujah was released on 2001 on Glen Miller. 25 Temas de lo Mejor del Swing Jazz.
One of his most famous works is In The Mood. I have chosen a recording from the TV show Scrubs soundtrack - Season 4.
14. Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey?
15. Do-Re-Mi
- Harry Connick Jnr
The music of Harry Connick Jnr spans a number of genres, from funk to jazz to blues and everywhere in between. The Bill Bailey track is from his 2007 album Oh, My Nola. Do-Re-Mi is his arrangement of the famous track from the movie Sound of Music, and comes from his 2001 CD, Songs I Heard.
16. I've Got You Under My Skin
17. Moondance
- Michael Bublé
A number of singers feature in tonight's show, all with fantastic backing bands. Bublé will soon be performing in Australia. I chose two contrasting swing tracks from his recordings. The first, I've Got You Under My Skin is a jazz classic from his 2011 album It's Time.
Moondance, by contrast, is a song penned by Irish singer Van Morrison, which I found on Bublé's 2011 self titled album.
18. Candyman - Christina Aguilera (Back to Basics)
I feel the collective stares of everyone as they wonder why I have included this on tonight's program. Well, take a good listen to it. Sounds very much like an old
Andrew Sisters song. Aguilera has, successfully I believe, managed to translate the sound and feel of this well know group in a modern setting. Complete with brass backing.
19. Norwegian Wood
20. Big Swing Face
- Buddy Rich
Rich was billed as "the world's greatest drummer" during his career, as he played with all the jazz greats, starting with Artie Shaw and Tommy Dorsey, all the way through to Louis Armstrong, Ray Brown and Ella Fitzgerald. It was in his final years in the late sixties when he led his own big band, in an era where the big band style was waning. These two tracks come from his 1967 album, Big Swing Face. The first track is a swing version of a Beatles song Norwegian Wood. The second track is from Bill Pottts and is the title track of the album Big Swing Face.
21. Waltzing Matilda
22. All of Me
- James Morrison
As one of my favourite artists, it would have been difficult for me not to have included at least a couple of tracks from this Australian jazz legend. The first track come from an album recorded live at the Sydney Opera House in 1996 and is a swing arrangement of Australia's unofficial national anthem, Waltzing Matilda.
The second track is from his latest CD released in 2012, Snappy Too and is his take on the classic song All of Me.
23. I Love Paris
24. Mrs Robinson
25. Mack The Knife
- Frank Sinatra
I finish tonight's program with three recordings from a performer know alternatively as "Ol' Blue Eyes" or "Chairman of the Board", Frank Sinatra. In a career lasting 60 years (his final performance in 1995, when he was 80) Sinatra covered just about every popular genre over that period, having released 297 singles and 69 albums. It was difficult to only choose 3 songs from this huge discography, but in the end chose I Love Paris (which I have taken from the 2003 release of All The Best. Mrs. Robinson, another swing version of a popular song, is from his 1969 album, My Way. The final track (which I note is my most played track in my i-Tunes catalog) is Mack the Knife. Sinatra had released at last 5 different versions of this song, but this one, as a duet with Jimmy Buffett, is the best.
I hope you enjoy the program. Swing and brass go together so well.
Next week we return to the brass band scene and Part 2 of music by Philip Sparke.
